The marathon and half both start at 10.15am on Sunday 4 October at Kielder Waterside. The 10K and gravel duathlon run the Saturday. No entries on the day.
The Altra Kielder Marathon weekend is on Saturday 3 and Sunday 4 October 2026 at Kielder Water, and the deadline that catches people out is the entry one: midnight on Wednesday 30 September, with no entries on the day.
Every time and rule below comes from the organiser, Events of the North, on its own event pages this week.
The two days
| Race | Day | Start |
|---|---|---|
| 10K | Sat 3 Oct | 1.00pm |
| Gravel Duathlon | Sat 3 Oct | 1.00pm |
| Marathon | Sun 4 Oct | 10.15am |
| Half Marathon | Sun 4 Oct | 10.15am |
| Junior races | Sun 4 Oct | 10.45am |
Saturday’s car park shuttles start at 10.30am, Sunday’s at 07.15am. The organiser asks everyone to arrive at least 90 minutes before their start, and repeats it in capitals in the FAQs, because the walk from car park to start line is a shuttle bus ride, not a stroll.
The marathon is the finale rather than the opener. As the organiser puts it, the weekend starts “with the 10K and Gravel Duathlon on Saturday”, and the marathon is “joined by the Altra Kielder Half Marathon and Junior races on Sunday”. The organiser’s own news pages call last year’s race the “15th annual Kielder Marathon”, so this is the sixteenth.
The course, and why there are no road closures
The route is almost entirely off-road, on the Lakeside Way around Kielder Water. That is the selling point and it is also why this event does not close roads: nothing is diverted and no temporary traffic order is needed. The pressure lands on car parks and shuttle buses instead.
The marathon and 10K start and finish at Kielder Waterside. The half marathon starts on the Dam and finishes at the same place as the others, and the organiser says it has “some dedicated parking near the start line on the Dam for competitors”, with kit and spectators taken to the finish by the usual bus service.
The gravel duathlon is a 10km run, a 34km bike and a 6.4km run, with transition one at Kielder Waterside. The bike leg runs up the Lakeside Way to Kielder village, takes in the north shore and returns over the dam. The organiser recommends “mountain bikes, hybrid bike, gravel or cyclocross”, and says plainly that traditional road bikes are not suitable.
The junior races are held inside Kielder Waterside Park: the Osprey run, 1.5km for children aged six to ten, and the Falcon run, 2.5km for eleven to fourteen. Adults may run alongside without entering. Note one contradiction on the organiser’s own site: the junior race page gives the age range as 6 to 14 while the FAQs say 6 to 15. If your child is fifteen, ask before you enter.
Cut-offs
These are strict and they are published in advance, which is unusual and useful.
- Marathon: you will be asked to withdraw if you reach the Dam, about 17.25 miles, after 3.45pm, or Tower Knowe, about 19 miles, after 4pm.
- Half marathon: 4 hours.
- 10K: runners “must be confident they can complete the course in under 2.5 hours”.
- Gravel duathlon: under 4.5 hours.
Parking, shuttles and spectators
There is no parking at the start line. The organiser runs dedicated car parks and buses:
- Car parks near the start at Kielder Waterside for the 10K, duathlon, marathon and junior races, and at the Dam for the half marathon. Follow the signs and the marshals.
- Shuttle buses are free for runners, and your race number is your ticket. If you are collecting your number on the day, bring your registration confirmation.
- Spectators pay £3 per person per day in advance, or £5 on the day. Spectator shuttles run through the day to vantage points around the route. The marathon page prices a spectator pass at £5 a day, the half, duathlon and junior pages at £3, which reads as the advance and on-the-day prices rather than a difference between races. Buy in advance and you pay £3.
- Well-behaved dogs are allowed on the buses, on a lead.
- The organiser asks people to car share.
Getting there without a car is hard. The organiser says so itself: “There is very limited public transport in the area.” Its answer is a dedicated return coach from Newcastle Central station at £12 per person, bookable during race registration and open to runners and spectators, on either a Saturday return for the 10K and duathlon or a Sunday return for the marathon and half.
If you are driving up from the coast or the south of the county, check our Northumberland roadworks and travel page before you set off; the approaches to Kielder are single-carriageway and there is no quick alternative if one is shut. Our parking page covers the county’s town car parks if you are staying somewhere else the night before.
Entering
- Closing date: midnight on 30 September 2026, or when the race sells out.
- No entries on the day.
- Age limits: 15 or over on the day for the 10K, 17 or over for the half marathon.
- Entry prices are on the organiser’s entry platform and change with early-bird periods, so we have not quoted a figure here. Affiliated rates need membership of a registered running or triathlon club, and all prices include VAT and the processing fee.
- Finishers get a medal and a goody bag; there are prizes for the first three men and women and for the veteran age groups.
- Race numbers, timing chips and the information pack are posted out in advance, and a digital race guide goes on the website before the event.
- The 2026 charity partner is the Northumberland and Newcastle Society, raising money for the upkeep of Kielder Viaduct, the organiser announced on its news page.
Kielder is a long drive from the Northumberland coast and the light goes early in October, so the sensible plan for spectators is the Saturday races or an early Sunday start. Kielder Waterside has lodges if you would rather not do the drive twice.
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